Time to get on the same page and zone

November 26, 2005

The sun rises in the east and sets in the west, every day. Our neighbors in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Illinois are all laughing at our debate. Since when do Mayor Richard Daley of Chicago, the state of Illinois and the Department of Transportation control Indiana's time? The majority of our state is on Eastern time. All of the state should be on the same time, Eastern or Central. The neighbors north, south and east are on Eastern time. These neighbors don't want it dark at 4:30 p.m. On Eastern time, it is daylight at 7:30 a.m. and dark at 5:30 p.m. in the winter. On Central time it is daylight at 6:30 a.m. and dark at 4:30 p.m. I don't blame Elkhart County for wanting to stay on Eastern time. Central time does not make sense for the state of Indiana. The entire state should be on one time zone or the other.

Robert E. ReumSouth Bend

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Good job

Regarding Tribune correspondent Jack Walton's review of The Company's "Singin' and Dancin' Into the Holidays" (Nov. 11): I am a senior citizen and I don't feel like I was being treated like a preschooler or kindergartner. It's called audience participation, and it is a lot of fun for us. Where else can we go for $7 and have three hours of entertainment and fun in this day and age? As for it being too early for Christmas music, what does he think "Singin' and Dancin' Into the Holidays" means? Christmas carols are sung before the holidays; after all, the stores start putting up Christmas decorations before Halloween. My friends and I are looking forward to going to next year's show already. We really enjoyed it.

Joan GeirnaertSouth Bend

Fresh air

One of my favorite features in The Tribune appears every Monday in the Food section. It's called The Amish Cook. There is a recipe at the end of each column that I'm sure results in many delicious meals. But what impresses me most about the column is the nourishment for the soul revealed in the Amish Cook's philosophy of life as she cares for her husband and eight children. For example, in her Nov. 7 column, Lovina tells how their 3-year-old son was running at 105 degree temperature and how she and her husband had to spend all night by his bedside in the hospital. In her column Lovina wrote, "I don't know what a person would do if we didn't have a great God to turn to for help. Do we thank him enough when things go well? Bad things happen sometimes to strengthen our faith in him." Lovina sprinkles her columns with similar insights about her relationship with God and how people in the Amish community support each other. My thanks to The Tribune for bringing this breath of fresh air into our homes each Monday.

Don GroomsSouth Bend

Cold winter

This is for the people who never look at their gas utility bill, but just pay it. Maybe this will pique their interest. Gas is sold in therm units. Following are the monthly rates, per therm, for the past year: December, 72.6 cents; January, 69.3 cents; February, 68.5 cents; March, 67.8 cents; April, 80.2 cents; May, .81 cents; June, 71.2 cents; August, 99.5 cents; September, $1.29.8 cents; and October, $1.41.9 cents. Our utility company is telling us that we can expect a 70 percent increase from last winter's bills. Do the math from January to October ... about 104 percent.

Leon A. CaenepeelSouth Bend

Wondering

Remember "Wander Indiana"? Today it's "Wonder" Indiana! Sounding something like "the sky is falling," we've been inundated, for years, with the buzzword that our time zone has just got to be changed to go along with the remainder of the country. The change became a reality with the arrival of "Our Man Mitch" as governor. But then the question became what time should Indiana have. Add to that question the possibility that the counties may have different time zones and now time and common sense are in jeopardy. The old system may not have worked well for everyone, but our new living and working time zones may really be out of sync.